Last weekend my husband, Justin, and I were invited to go camping in Sequoia National Forest with our Romanian neighbors and a group of their friends. On Saturday, Justin and I decided to go on a hike up to Mist Falls with our neighbor, Filip, and his close friend, Volley (please forgive me if I've misspelled your name). We thought the trip would be about 5 miles round trip. For us, 5 miles is doable. Just the right distance for a comfortable day hike.
When we arrived at the trail head, Justin and I saw the sign for Mist Falls 4.7 miles. We looked at one another and one of us said, "Is that one way or round trip?" But before either of us had a chance to answer, we were off.
We were on a tight schedule. Filip and Volley wanted to get back to camp in time to roast a pig for dinner, so they set Olympic record-setting pace. Justin and I really had to MOVE to keep up. I was the shortest in the bunch, so I felt like for every step everyone else took, I had to take five just to keep up.
On the hike, we learned all about Romania including the hiking and camping the guys had done there and then here in the States. We discovered that Volley was used to hiking from the wall of the Grand Canyon to the valley floor and back up again in a day. He was tall and thin and graceful and reminded me of a Praying Mantis. The man covered some serious ground with each step.
Thanks to chatting, the first few miles went by quickly and relatively painlessly. But then Filip reminded us that we needed to step it up. We had a schedule to keep.
After about 4 miles of sprinting up the trail, we finally came to a gorgeous waterfall. Yeah! We did it! We made it!
But then Volley whistled to us from farther up the trail. He shouted, "Hey guys, this isn't Mist Falls."
It's not? I thought. UGH!
"Come on. We have to hurry," he said disappearing up the mountain.
My mind swirled with ugly thoughts as we continued onwards. Why aren't we there yet? I can't do this. I'm tired. I'm hungry. I'm hot. Wah, wah, wah. The Forest Service mileage sign lies. How can those guys hike so fast? Why am I so out of shape? This is embarrassing. I'm a Personal Trainer. Why have I been so lazy lately? This is more than 4.7 miles. Wah, wah, wah.
I just wanted to pull off my shoes, dunk my feet in the water and eat my peanut butter and jelly sandwich while basking in self misery. But I didn't. Something strange happens when you're with other people, especially people you don't know too well. Your mind's racing with nastiness, but your mouth is on its best behavior and there's a need to prove that you're not a wuss.
As such, if I was going to continue, it was time I took a moment to reevaluate the situation. I know from experience that when I get grouchy on a trail it means I'm hungry, so I pulled out a handful of trail mix from my backpack. When I finished munching, I took a long drink of water from, then dunked my head in the cold river. As I watched my hair flow downstream, I thought about the longest hike Justin and I had ever been on.
We hiked over 22 miles in 2 days near Devil's Postpile National Monument near Mammoth, California. It was brutal as our packs were too heavy (45 pounds) and, thanks to snow, we wasted a lot of time navigating by map and compass. However, this was also one of the most rewarding trips we have ever done. The scenery was spectacular as was the sense of accomplishment we felt when we arrived at camp and later back at the car.
As we continued on, I took in the scenery, enjoyed the companionship of our new friends and thought about all of the things I thought I couldn't do and then wound up doing: a 5K run, two sprint triathlons, bicycling 65 miles in one day, etc... I then realized that each accomplishment came from an experience like this, one in which my perceptions of what I could and could not accomplish were blown away by people who simply don't comprehend the word can't.
And before we knew it, we arrived at our destination. It was spectacular. A gorgeous waterfall cascading off of tan stripped rocks, misting us with cool water. Volley continued onwards and hiked up the rock face in about three seconds.
Filip, Justin and I relaxed on a fallen tree and had a snack. Justin and I
enjoyed our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We made it! We survived. And three seconds later, it was time to begin our hike back to the car.
Filip ran down the mountain, scaring a bear out of the way for us. Meanwhile, Volley hiked back with Justin and I. When we got to the truck, Justin and I looked at each other, proud, excited and exhilarated. We had done the second longest hike of our lives and we had done it, according to Filip, in under three hours. What a huge accomplishment!
That Saturday, I was reminded, once again, that when you beat your way through the self-defeating thoughts and just go, you can accomplish anything. Although for me this was a repeat lesson, it was one that was long overdue.
Posted August 5th, 2009
Copyright 2009 Amy Giaquinto
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